New Clinical Best AAA issues Practice Guidance on Advanced Analgesia and Sedation

A new Clinical Best Practice Guidance document has been issued by the Association of Air Ambulances (AAA) on ‘Advanced analgesia and sedation’ to promote best practice in advanced prehospital care, delivered by UK Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS).

The new Best Practice Guide joined three other Guides being republished following updates; ‘Defibrillation and Pacing during Aeromedical transport’, ‘Post Return of Spontaneous Circulation (ROSC) Care’ and ‘Photography and Video Imagery’. All four documents were developed and published by the AAA’s Clinical subcommittee in May 2017 led by Dr Gareth Davies Medical Director of London’s Air Ambulance.

Each of the documents aim to provide an introduction, guidance and treatment recommendations for air ambulances, enabling them to adopt best practice in the topics they cover. Best Practice Guides issued by the AAA draw on the experience of clinicians working on helicopters around the whole of the UK and form a bench mark for excellent care.

Dr Gareth Davies, Chair of the AAA Clinical Subcommittee said:

“Improving patient outcomes through shared knowledge is essential and each of the Best Practice Guidance documents published by the AAA’s Clinical Subcommittee aims to share knowledge and promote best practice. Pain control and sedation are fundamental elements of patient care but in the complex environment can easily go wrong, hopefully this document will encourage safe and effective practices around the UK.

Gareth continued: “The AAA Best Practice Guides are reviewed and updated on an annual basis. The committee has an amazing amount of talent and experience around the table which means the documents are distillations of many years of experience taking the best bits from services all over the UK. These latest guides will now be added to growing list of best practice guides available to the HEMS community”